Method and apparatus for maintaining stable flame conditions in a gas burner

ABSTRACT

A gas burner apparatus comprising a burner base disposed over a gas burner, a burner head disposed over the burner base, and one or more burner covers disposed over the burner head. A method comprising a burner base over a gas burner, providing a burner headwith one or more burner ports over the burner base, providing one or more burner covers over the burner head, and sliding one or more burner covers over at least one of the one or more burner ports.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Not Applicable.

FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention relates in general to cooking assemblies, and more particularly, to a gas burner apparatus and the method for providing both a high burning rate of such apparatus when needed and maintaining stable flame conditions when the burning rate of such apparatus is reduced.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In conventional gas cooking appliances, a plurality of gas burners are arranged in an array on a gas cook top. A manifold connects the plurality of gas burners to a source of gas fuel and the valves on the manifolds allows the user to adjust the flow of gas to the burners. Typically, gas burners are annular or circular in shape. There are also flame-generating ports disposed around the burner to provide a ring of burning flames emanating from the ports when the user adjusts the flow of gas to the burner. However, conventional gas burners fail to provide a wide range of heating capability, for example, from high burning rates with low-time-to-boil to low burning rates with simmering capability. Thus, a user who wants to run at high burning rates to cook food as quickly as possible may not be able to turn the burner down low enough to keep the burner at a consistent burning rate for simmering food. The lower burning rate will also save fuel if the user decides to keep the burner running so that there will be no heat up delay when the burner is restarted. Therefore, a need exists for a burner apparatus that allows users to maintain a low burning rate and more consistent burning flames without the need to completely turn off the burner and the ability to run at a high burning rate to cook the food when needed.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides an apparatus and a method for maintaining stable flame conditions of a gas burner without sacrificing the burning rate at the top end. In one aspect of the present disclosure, a gas burner apparatus is provided comprising a burner base disposed over a gas burner, a burner head disposed over the burner base, and one or more burner covers disposed over the burner head.

A gas burner apparatus is disclosed in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. A gas burner apparatus comprising a burner base disposed over a gas burner, a burner head disposed over the burner hot plate base and one or more burner covers slidably disposed over the burner head.

A method for maintaining stable burning flames of a gas burner is also disclosed. The method comprises providing a burner base over a gas burner, providing a burner head with one or more burner ports over the burner base, providing one or more burner covers over the burner head, and sliding the one or more burner covers over at least one of the one or more burner ports.

The following description and drawings set forth in detail a number of illustrative embodiments of the invention. These embodiments are indicative of but a few of the various ways in which the present invention may be utilized.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL DRAWINGS

A more complete appreciation of the present invention is provided by reference to the following detailed description of the appended drawings and figures. The following descriptions, in conjunction with the appended figures, enable a person having skill in the art to recognize the numerous advantages and features of the present invention by understanding the various disclosed embodiments. The following figures are utilized to best illustrate these features.

FIG. 1 is a diagram of an exemplary gas burner in accordance with the prior art;

FIG. 2 is a diagram of an exemplary gas burner apparatus for maintaining stable flame conditions in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3A is a diagram of top of an exemplary burner base 202 in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3B is a diagram of side of an exemplary burner base 202 in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4 is a diagram of top of an exemplary burner head with hidden side burner ports in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 5 is a diagram of side of an exemplary burner head 204 in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 6 is a diagram of top of an exemplary burner head with visible side burner ports in accordance with an one embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 7A is a diagram of top of a burner cover in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 7B is a diagram of side of a burner cover in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 8 is a diagram of burner covers in a closed position in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 9 is a diagram of burner covers in an open position in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 10 is a flowchart of a method for maintaining stable flame conditions of a gas burner in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure; and

FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a movable burner port cover in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The following discussion is presented to enable a person skilled in the art to make and use the invention. The general principles described herein may be applied to embodiments and applications other than those detailed below without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims. The present invention is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown, but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and features disclosed herein.

Referring to FIG. 1, a diagram of an exemplary gas burner is depicted in accordance with the prior art. In this embodiment, gas burner 100 is annular or circular in shape. The gas burner 100 comprises a top portion 102 and a base portion 104. The top portion 102 comprises one or more burner ports 106 formed on a radially outward facing surface 108 and a radially inward facing surface 110. The burner ports 106 may be round or slot-shaped and evenly spaced around the top portion 102 of the gas burner 100 or grouped into clusters. The burner ports 106 extend therethrough from the radially outward facing surface 108 to the radially inward facing surface 110. The bottom 114 of the gas burner 100 may be left open.

Referring to FIG. 2, a diagram of an exemplary gas burner apparatus for maintaining stable flame conditions is depicted in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. In this embodiment, gas burner apparatus 200 comprises gas burner 100 from FIG. 1, a burner base 202, a burner head 204, and one or more slidable burner port covers 206. In one embodiment, the burner base 202 and the burner head 204 are mounted together (or formed in a single piece) in a stacked relationship and placed over the top portion 102 of gas burner 100. Alternatively, the burner base 202 may be separate from the burner head 204 and placed between the top portion 102 of the gas burner 100 and the burner head 204.

A flow of gas may be provided from gas burner 100 through a channel opening 112 in the burner base 202. The channel opening 112 provides an opening for a circumferential channel that connects between a gas supply (not shown) and the burner head 204 to supply a gas flow for the burning flames. A valve (not shown) may be used to control the amount of gas flow provided to the burner head 204 from the gas supply. In such case, the user may control the amount of gas supply to the burner ports by adjusting the valve.

The burner base 202, burner head 204, and the one or more slidable burner port covers 206 may be manufactured using any one of various materials known to be useful for conducting heat to a food product while generally maintaining a desired temperature. One example of materials is a metal coated with a material with a low coefficient of friction, such as polytetrafluoroethylene. However, other types of metal known to be useful in conducting heat may be used to construct burner base 202, burner head 204, and the one or more slidable burner port covers 206 without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 3A, a diagram of a top view of an exemplary burner base 202 is depicted in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. As discussed above, burner base 202 may be mounted together with the burner head 204 or independent from the burner head 204. In this embodiment, the burner base 202 includes a channel having a circular opening 302 at the center to allow for burning flames emanating from burner ports 106 formed on the radially inward facing surface 110 of the gas burner 100 as shown in FIG. 1. In addition, burner base 202 includes a plurality of caps 304 to assist in positioning the burner base 202 over the top portion 102 of the gas burner 100. The burner base 202 provides a stable base for the burner head 204, such that the burner head 204 may be positioned properly over the top portion 102 of the gas burner 100. As discussed above, a channel opening 112 is also provided in the burner base 202 for a gas flow supply of the burning flames.

Referring to FIG. 3B, a diagram of a side view of an exemplary burner base 202 is depicted in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. In this embodiment, burner base 202 comprises a center opening 302. In addition, the burner base 202 comprises a hollow portion 308 and a plurality of raised portions 310 and 312. A first raised portion 310 extends around the center opening 302 of the burner base 202. A second raised portion 312 extends around the outer circumference of the burner base 202. The hollow portion 308 extends between the first raised portion 310 and the second raised portion 312 around the center opening 302 of the burner base 202. The hollow portion 308 and the plurality of raised portions 310 and 312 are provided such that the burner head 204 fits tightly over the burner base 202 when it is placed over the burner base 202.

Referring to FIG. 4, a diagram of a top view of an exemplary burner head with hidden side burner ports is depicted in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. In this embodiment, burner head 204 includes a channel having a circular opening 402 at the center, one or more alignment openings 404, 406, 408, 410, and one or more burner ports 412 formed on the top surface 414 of the burner head 204. The channel having the circular opening extends from the top surface 414 to the bottom of the burner head 204. The burner head 204 also comprises one or more burner ports 412 disposed around the center opening 402 in a circumferential manner. In this embodiment, the one or more burner ports 412 are arranged in a circular manner around the center opening 402 to provide a ring of even burning flames to the top surface 414 of the burner head 204. While the one or more burner ports 412 are arranged in a circular manner, other arrangements of burner ports 412 may be used without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. In addition, the specific number of burner ports 412 depicted in FIG. 4 are for illustrative purpose only. Additional or fewer number of burner ports 412 may be used without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure.

The burner head 204 further comprises one or more alignment openings 404, 406, 408, 410 disposed around the one or more burner ports 412. In this embodiment, four alignment openings 404, 406, 408, and 410 are shown with one pair of alignment openings 404 and 406 being disposed on one side of the burner head 204 and the other pair of alignment openings 408 and 410 being disposed on the other side of the burner head 204. The pair of alignment openings 404 and 406 disposed on one side of the burner head 204 is used to align a first slidable burner port cover 206. The pair of alignment openings 408 and 410 disposed on the other side of the burner head 204 is used to align a second slidable burner port cover 206.

Referring to FIG. 5, a diagram of a side cross-sectional view of an exemplary burner head 204 is depicted in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. Burner head 204 in FIG. 5 comprises a center opening 402 and one or more burner ports 412. In addition, the burner head 204 comprises one or more burner ports 510 facing inwardly towards the center opening 402 of the burner head 204. The one or more burner ports 510 provide a ring of even burning flames on the inwardly facing surface of the burner head 204 for cooking in addition to the burner ports 106 formed on the inwardly facing surface 110 of the gas burner 100.

The burner head 204 also comprises one or more channels 502, 504, and 506 providing conduits for burning flames. In one embodiment, channel 506 is provided to connect between the center opening 402 and the one or more burner ports 508 to channel burning flames to the one or more burner ports 510 within the burner head 204.

Another channel 502 is provided to connect between the one or more burner ports 510 within the burner head 204 and the outward facing surface of the burner head 204 to channel burning flames to one or more burner ports 512 formed on the outward facing surface of the burner head 204. In this way, a ring of even burning flames may be provided to the side of burner head 204 for cooking in addition to the burner ports 106 formed on the outward facing surface 108 of the gas burner 100.

The burner head 204 further comprises a channel 504 connecting between the one or more burner ports 510 within the burner head 204 and the top surface 414 of the burner head 204 as described in FIG. 4 to channel burning flames to the one or more burner ports 412 formed on the top surface 414 of the burner head 204. In this way, a ring of even burning flames may be provided to the top surface 414 of the burner head 204 for cooking. It is noted that the number of burner ports 508, 510 and 512 in burner head 204 as shown in FIG. 5 are for illustrative purpose only and any number of burner ports 508, 510 and 512 may be implemented without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 6, a diagram of a top view of an exemplary burner head with visible side burner ports is depicted in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. Similar to burner head 204 in FIG. 4, burner head 204 comprises one or more alignment openings 404, 406, 408 and 410 and one or more burner ports 412 formed on the top surface 414 of the burner head 204. In addition, burner head 204 comprises one or more burner ports 512 formed on the outward facing surface of the burner head 204. In this embodiment, the one or more burner ports 512 are also arranged in a circular manner around the outward facing surface of the burner head 204 to provide a ring of even burning flames around the outer surface of the burner head 204.

While the one or more burner ports 412 and 512 are arranged in a circular manner, other arrangements of burner ports 412 and 512 may be used without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. In addition, the number of burner ports 412 and 512 as depicted in FIG. 6 is for illustrative purpose only. Additional or fewer number of burner ports 412 and 512 may be used without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. Furthermore, the size of burner ports 412 and 512 are not limited to those shown in FIG. 6 as one of ordinary skill in the art would recognize.

Referring to FIGS. 7A and 7B, diagrams of top and side views of a slidable burner port cover are depicted in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. In this embodiment, slidable burner port cover 206 is semi-circular in shape and comprises a slot 702 and one or more circular caps 704. The slot 702 is disposed near the outer edge of the burner port cover 206 while the one or more circular caps 704 are disposed on opposite ends of the burner port cover 206. The slot 702 provides the user a grip of the slidable burner port cover 206 when the user slides the burner port cover 206 over the one or more burner ports 412 and 512. In addition, the one or more circular caps 704 are disposed on the burner port cover 206, such that they are aligned with a pair of alignment openings of the burner hot plate 204 when the burner port cover 206 is placed over the burner head 204. For example, the one or more circular caps 704 may be aligned with a pair of alignment openings 404 and 406 of burner head 204 as depicted in FIG. 4. Alternatively, the one or more circular caps 704 may be aligned with a pair of alignment openings 408 and 410 of burner head 204 as depicted in FIG. 4.

As discussed above, a user may want to run at high burning rates to cook food as quickly as possible. However, given the limitations of gas burner 100, the user may not be able to turn the burner down low enough to keep the burner at a consistent burning rate for simmering food. Using slidable burner port cover 206, the burning rate of flames emanating from the top surface 414 of the burner head 204 may be reduced to a lower burning rate for consistent burning flames without the need to turn the burner completely off.

In one embodiment, the burning rate is reduced by closing the one or more burner ports 412 and 512 of the burner head 204 after the slidable burner port cover 206 is disposed over the burner head 204. To close the one or more burner ports 412 and 512, the one or more circular caps 704 of the slidable burner port cover 206 is slid along the one or more alignment openings 404, 406, 408 and 410 of the burner head 204 in a direction towards the center of the burner head 204. Once the more or more slidable burner ports 412 and 512 are closed, less burner port area is provided on the top surface 414 of the burner head 204. This means that less gas is required for the burner and fuel is conserved even if the user decides to keep the burner running. In addition, more stable flame conditions are achieved when the one or more burner ports 412 and 512 are closed for simmering food. More details regarding closing the one or more burner ports are discussed with reference to FIG. 8 below.

If the user decides to keep the burner running, there will be no heat up delay for restarting the burner because the user may simply turn up the burner and open the one or more burner ports 412 and 512 to increase the burning rate of the flames emanating from the top surface 414 of the burner head 204 by sliding the burner port cover 206 away from the center of the burner head 204. Referring to FIG. 8, a diagram of one or more slidable burner covers placed over the burner head in a closed position is depicted in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. In this embodiment, slidable burner cover 802 is placed over one side of the burner head 204 by aligning the one or more circular caps 806 and 808 with a pair of alignment openings 404 and 406 located on burner head 204. For example, caps 806 and 808 are aligned to the right side of the alignment openings 404 and 406 or the side that is close to the center of the burner head 204. Similarly, slidable burner cover 804 is placed over another side of the burner head 204 by aligning the one or more circular caps 810 and 812 with a pair of alignment openings 408 and 410 located on burner head 204. For example, caps 810 and 812 are aligned to the left side of the alignment openings 408 and 410 or the side that is close to the center of the burner head 204.

Referring to FIG. 9, a diagram of a set of slidable burner covers placed over the burner head in an open position is depicted in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. In this embodiment, the one or more slidable burner ports 412 and 512 are closed by sliding the burner port covers 902 and 904 in a direction towards the center of the burner head 204. For example, slidable burner port cover 902 is slid into a closed position by sliding the caps 906 and 908 of the burner port cover 902 to the right direction 914 towards the center of the burner head 204 along the pair of alignment openings 404 and 406. After the slidable burner port cover 902 is slid into a closed position, caps 906 and 908 are aligned with the left side of the alignment openings 404 and 406 or the side that is far away from the center of the burner head 204.

Similarly, slidable burner port cover 904 is slid into a closed position by sliding the caps 910 and 912 of the burner port cover 904 to the left direction 916 towards the center of the burner head 204 along the pair of alignment openings 408 and 410. After the slidable burner port cover 904 is slid into a closed position, caps 910 and 912 are aligned with the right side of the alignment openings 408 and 410 or the side that is far away from the center of the burner head 204.

By sliding the burner port covers 902 and 904 to a closed position as illustrated in this figure, at least one of the one or more burner ports 412 and 512 are closed and the amount and burning rate of flames emanating from the one or more burner ports 412 and 512 are significantly reduced and more consistent burning flames are achieved. In other words, the slidable burner port covers 902 and 904, if slid into a closed position, keep the burning rate of flames emanating from the one or more burner ports 412 and 512 to a minimal consistent level without completely turning off the gas burner 100. In this way, the user may keep the burner running and conserve gas at the same time.

Referring to FIG. 10, a flowchart of a method for maintaining stable flame conditions of a gas burner is depicted in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. Process 1000 begins at step 1002 to provide a burner base 202 over a gas burner 100. For example, burner base 202 may be placed over the top portion 102 of the gas burner 100.

Next, process 1000 continues to step 1004 to provide a burner head 204 with one or more burner ports over the burner base 202. For example, burner head 204 with one or more burner ports 412 and 512 may be placed over the burner base 202.

Next, process 1000 then continues to step 1006 to provide one or more slidable burner covers over the burner head. For example, one or more slidable burner port covers 206 may be placed over the burner head 204 by aligning the one or more circular caps 704 of the burner port covers 206 with the one or more alignment openings, such as alignment openings 404, 406.

Next, process 1000 then completes at step 1008 to slide the one or more slidable burner port covers 206 over at least one of the one or more burner ports 412 and 512. For example, the one or more slidable burner port covers 206 may be placed over the one or more burner ports 412 and 512 by sliding one or more circular caps 704 of slidable burner port covers 206 towards the center of the burner head 204 along the one or more pair of alignment openings 404 and 406 located on the burner head 204.

In addition to providing burner port covers such as burner port cover 206, a single movable burner port cover may be provided over the top surface 414 of the burner head 204 to cover the one or more burner ports 412 and 512 in order to reduce the burning rate. Referring to FIG. 11, a diagram illustrating a movable burner port cover is depicted in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. In this embodiment, movable burner port cover 1100 is circular in shape and comprises a center opening 1101 and one or more holes 1102 that are disposed around the center opening 1101. Similar to burner port cover 206, movable burner port cover 1100 also comprises a slot 1104, which is disposed on the outer edge of the integrated burner port cover 1100 for easy gripping by the user. The one or more holes 1102 maintain the burning rate of flames emanating from the one or more burner ports 412 and 512 to a minimal consistent level without completely turning off the gas burner 100.

In addition, movable burner port cover 1110 comprises a plurality of extensions 1106, which extend from the outer edge of the integrated burner port cover 1100. In this embodiment, four extensions 1106 are provided which extend from the outer edge of the movable burner port cover 1100 at 0, 90, 180, and 270 degree angle respectively. The plurality of extensions 1106 allow the user to rotate, move, or slide the movable burner port cover 1110 over across the top surface 414 of the burner head 204 such that the movable burner port cover 1100 is disposed over the one or more burner ports 412 and 512. Thus, instead of having to slide both slidable burner port covers 902 and 904 along the pair of alignment openings 404 and 406 to cover the one or more burner ports 412 and 512, the user only needs to rotate, move, or slide a single movable burner port cover 1110 to cover the one or more burner ports 412 and 512.

Although the invention has been shown and described with respect to a certain preferred embodiment or embodiments, it is obvious that equivalent alterations and modifications will occur to others skilled in the art upon the reading and understanding of this specification and the annexed drawings. In addition, while a particular feature of the invention may have been disclosed with respect to only one of several embodiments, such feature may be combined with one or more other features of the other embodiments as may be desired. It is therefore, contemplated that the claims will cover any such modifications or embodiments that fall within the true scope of the invention. 

1. A gas burner apparatus comprising: a burner base disposed over a gas burner; a burner head disposed over the burner base; and one or more burner covers slidably disposed over the burner head.
 2. The gas burner apparatus of claim 1, wherein the burner base is independent from the burner head.
 3. The gas burner apparatus of claim 1, wherein the burner base comprises a channel having a circular opening at a center of the burner base.
 4. The gas burner apparatus of claim 1, wherein the burner base comprises a plurality of caps for positioning the burner base over the gas burner.
 5. The gas burner apparatus of claim 1, wherein the burner head comprises: a channel having a circular opening at a center of the burner head; a first set of one or more burner ports disposed around the circular opening on a top surface of the burner head; and one or more alignment openings disposed around the one or more burner ports.
 6. The gas burner apparatus of claim 5, wherein the one or more burner ports are arranged in a circumferential manner around the circular opening.
 7. The gas burner apparatus of claim 5, wherein the one or more alignment openings comprises: a first pair of alignment openings disposed on one side of the burner head; and a second pair of alignment openings disposed on another side of the burner head.
 8. The gas burner apparatus of claim 7, wherein the first pair of alignment openings are used to align a first burner cover and the second pair of alignment openings are used to align a second burner cover.
 9. The gas burner apparatus of claim 5, wherein the burner head comprises one or more channels, and wherein a first channel connects between the circular opening and the first set of one or more burner ports.
 10. The gas burner apparatus of claim 9, further comprising a second set of one or more burner ports disposed around an outward facing surface of the burner head.
 11. The gas burner apparatus of claim 10, wherein a second channel connects between the circular opening and the second set of one or more burner ports.
 12. The gas burner apparatus of claim 5, wherein the one or more burner covers are semi-circular in shape and comprise a slot and one or more circular caps.
 13. The gas burner apparatus of claim 12, wherein the slot is disposed near an outer edge of the one or more burner covers and the one or more circular caps are disposed near a center of the one or more burner covers.
 14. The gas burner apparatus of claim 12, wherein the one or more circular caps are aligned with the one or more alignment openings of the burner head when the one or more burner covers are disposed over the burner head.
 15. The gas burner apparatus of claim 14, wherein the one or more burner covers are disposed over the burner head in an open position when: a first pair of the one or more circular caps are aligned to a side of a first pair of the one or more alignment openings, whereby the circular caps are positioned at a point closest to the center of the burner head; and a second pair of the one or more circular caps are aligned to a side of a second pair of the one or more alignment openings, whereby the circular caps are positioned at a point closest to the center of the burner head.
 16. The gas burner apparatus of claim 15, wherein the one or more burner covers are disposed over the one or more burner ports in a closed position when: a first pair of the one or more circular caps are aligned to a side of a first pair of the one or more alignment openings, whereby the circular caps are positioned at a point furtherest from the center of the burner head; and, a second pair of the one or more circular caps are aligned to a side of a second pair of the one or more alignment openings, whereby the circular caps are positioned at a point furtherest from the center of the burner head.
 17. A method for maintaining stable flame conditions of a gas burner comprising: providing a burner base over a gas burner; providing a burner head with one or more burner ports over the burner base; providing one or more burner covers over the burner head; and sliding the one or more burner covers over at least one of the one or more burner ports.
 18. The method of claim 17, wherein providing a burner head with one or more burner ports over the burner base comprises: providing a circular opening at a center of the burner head; providing one or more burner ports around the circular opening; and providing one or more alignment openings around the one or more burner ports.
 19. The method of claim 18, wherein providing one or more burner covers over the burner head comprises: providing one or more circular caps on the one or more burner covers; and aligning the one or more circular caps with the one or more alignment openings of the burner head.
 20. The method of claim 19, wherein providing one or more burner covers over the burner head further comprises: aligning a first pair of the one or more circular caps to a side of a first pair of the one or more alignment openings close to the center of the burner head; and aligning a second pair of the one or more circular caps to a side of a second pair of the one or more alignment openings close to the center of the burner head.
 21. The method of claim 20, wherein sliding one or more burner covers over at least one of the one or more burner ports comprises: sliding the one or more circular caps towards the center of the burner head along the one or more alignment openings, wherein the first pair of the one or more circular caps is aligned with a side of the first pair of the one or more alignment openings far away from the center of the burner head, and wherein the second pair of the one or more circular caps is aligned with a side of the second pair of the one or more alignment openings far away from the center of the burner head.
 22. A gas burner apparatus comprising: a burner base disposed over a gas burner; a burner head disposed over the burner base; and a movable burner port cover disposed over one or more burner ports of the burner head.
 23. The gas burner apparatus of claim 22, wherein the movable port burner cover comprises: a center opening; one or more holes disposed around the center opening; a slot disposed around an outer edge of the movable burner port cover; and a plurality of extensions extending from the outer edge of the movable burner port cover. 